Luke Blackall talks to Magnus Carlsen about his two careers

Actor, artist, writer, musician – and tomorrow night, both co-host and nominee at the Oscars. But is Hollywood's new renaissance man spreading his talents just a little too thinly?

New York Fashion Week was full of sleek collections inspired by the roaring Forties and glamorous Seventies. Autumn 2011 will be a sophisticated affair, says the Harvey Nichols buying director Averyl Oates

Building on the critical acclaim that has quieted those who disparaged her as nothing more than another celebrity designer, Victoria Beckham showcased her sixth collection of dresses at New York Fashion Week yesterday. The pregnant Mrs B experimented with bold yellows, oranges and reds and sculptural use of fabric.

Taiwan-born Jason Wu takes the laurels in NYC, the first of the big international shows

The dark, dynamic and almost forgotten doyen of street art, Richard Hambleton, returns after 25 years of skulking in the shadows. Alice Jones sees the results

'I hadn't told him I was pregnant so there was a shock when I emailed my measurements over'

"Smells Like Rockin' Robin" may not be troubling the mashup charts (the last time I looked, Squarepusher vs Emiliana Torrini was No 1), but it was all over New York Fashion week two weeks ago. It was used as a warm-up for the Tommy Hilfiger show, and could be heard blasting out of iPod docks all over the city. Produced by bootleg/mashup remixer Mark Vidler (aka Go Home Productions), "Smells Like Rockin' Robin" is an astonishing combination of Nirvana and the Jackson 5, and is one of the best records I've heard all year.

Revelations about pop stars and actors are everywhere. But can you believe any of them?

It's time to move on from the hoopla about 'Houlihans' – those tight combat trousers that gave everyone action-hero thighs. The J Brand jeans to snap up this season are the 'Gigis'. On paper, the idea of cropped bootcut jeans sounds all wrong; on the body, they make perfect sense.

Latest pictures from collections showing at New York Fashion Week.

"Oh, thank God," Gwyneth Paltrow exclaimed, reaching for a passing tray of canapes. "I haven't eaten in days!" Not exactly on-message, given that she's due to publish her first cookbook in April. Ms Paltrow's punishing schedule, she told me, keeps her sooo busy that she's hard-pressed to find time for meals. "And I'm about to start filming a Steven Soderbergh movie [the star-studded epidemic thriller, Contagion]." The Oscar-winning actress, attending a party at her pal Stella McCartney's London store in aid of Kids Company, divulged a couple of her culinary influences: "I just love Jamie Oliver, and the River Café guys." As her website, Goop.com reveals, Ms Paltrow recently spent a day in the kitchen at the River Café, "stationed at the deep fat fryer (Delight! Fried zucchini!)" We call them courgettes, Gwyn, but anyway. Her decidedly non-macrobiotic cookbook, My Father's Daughter, will be peppered with recipes already familiar to fans of Goop, such as her "Low-Maintenance Turkey" – a phrase unlikely to fit its sales performance.

Lagerfeld in a sketch, Hirst in a cathedral and Joaquin Phoenix in a weird state of mind

While the transition from sportsman to model is a fairly obvious one for some of football's megastars, it is a path less well trodden by chess grandmasters.